The Senators’ five-game win streak catapulted them to third in the Atlantic Division, significantly boosting their playoff aspirations and setting the stage for potential trade deadline moves.
On January 25th, Tim Stützle debuted his new buzz cut. This was the start of a five-game win streak for the Ottawa Senators, propelling them into third in the Atlantic.
Now, despite the streak being over, the Sens find themselves in a spot where they could be buyers at the upcoming trade deadline if they can keep it up.
And amongst an injury-riddled week leading up to the break, they may need to buy sooner rather than later.
The win streak started with a 2-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. While this game didn’t solve the scoring drought for Ottawa, they got two key points over an in-division team, who they are hot on the heels of.
They continued the streak, beating the Utah Hockey Club 3-1, a game where Claude Giroux and Brady Tkachuk both snapped a goal drought. Things were heating up for the Sens and it seemed like their top guys were getting back on track.
They rallied an overtime win over the first place in the conference Washington Capitals and then gave the Minnesota Wild a 6-0 whopping. They finished off the streak with a 5-2 win over Nashville and it was safe to say the offense is back.
The Ottawa Senators were looking to ride that win streak into the break before the Four Nations Face-Off, especially having to play the Tampa Bay Lightning back-to-back on the road.
Up until the streak that placed the Sens in third in the division, the Lightning and Sens had been battling it out in the Wild Card race.
Gaining a few points over them, in Florida would have been huge for the Sens. But despite Linus Ullmark’s return to the line-up, they lost the Tuesday night game 4-3.
The positive takeaway from this game is that they still managed three goals and haven’t reverted back to their offensive struggles, a four-goal start from Ullmark and losing players to injury make it seem as though the break can’t come fast enough.
Josh Norris, Nick Cousins, Noah Gregor, and now Shane Pinto are all out due to injury.
Needless to say, the Sens are lacking in centers at the moment. While they can jumble around the line-up, they will be missing Norris and Pinto especially.
The good news with Pinto is he is day-to-day, and may be back in the lineup for the Tampa Bay rematch, and Gregor is also set to come out of the LTIR around that time.
They will be missing Norris the most though. His injury is undisclosed and he is not set to return until at least Feb. 25th. Norris was a key depth player for the Senators, especially when it came to the struggling offense.
With four centers currently out with various injuries, it makes you think the Senators could be looking to buy some offensive depth at the deadline. While I think this is what they would be looking to do anyway, especially after their lackluster January, they may need to look into moving some things around sooner rather than later if they want to stay in the playoff picture.
Ottawa’s Florida road trip sees them playing the Tampa Bay Lightning again on Feb. 6th, a game they will be looking to gain back. The Sens are only two points ahead of the Lightning and would certainly prefer to keep them from getting any closer. Tampa also has two games in hand, having only played 52 games compared to Ottawa’s 54.
Ottawa finishes their front half of the season with a home opener rematch, playing the Florida Panthers on Feb. 8th.
While the “Tkachuk Bowl” is always a good matchup, often a scrappy one, the Senators will be hoping to escape this one unscathed, especially considering how beat up they already are.
The Panthers sit at the top of the Atlantic and are a tough team to round out the road trip on. However, if they can emulate their previous game against the defending Cup champions, the Senators are capable of beating this team with a full 60-minute game.
It is looking like the Ottawa Senators will continue to be in the playoff conversation come the end of January, and if that is the case, they will be looking to buy this deadline.
If that is the case, here are a few players they may target towards the end of the month.
Casey Mittelstadt, C, Avalanche
While Colorado sits at first in their Wild Card hunt right now, the Avalanche are open to trading their number two center at this deadline.
Again, looking at the injury-riddled centers for the Senators, getting some more depth at that position would take some pressure off guys like Ridley Greig who are stepping into a center role. He would be able to move back to the wing and overall make the offensive core deeper.
Standing at 6’1, Mittelstadt would also fit in with the gritty, hard-working personality the Sens have been looking to adopt this season. He would add speed to this line-up and slot in alongside David Perron and Drake Batherson on the second line.
Ryan Donato, C, Blackhawks
Another center option is Ryan Donato. He has been heating up on the Blackhawks this season, and will likely be dealt at the deadline to a competing team. He, again, could add depth to the Senators’ offense, fitting in as a fourth-line center, or starting the occasional game on the wing.
Trent Frederic, LW, Bruins
A player I would like to see the Senators target is Trent Frederic. The Bruins are trending downward as the seasons go on and will be looking to move a lot of their players while their stock is still high.
Frederic is one player who could be on the trade block and would fit in well with the Sens.
His rough, playoff style of play would match the Ottawa Senators grit and would make them a team fewer and fewer teams would want to play. Frederic would once again add some depth to this offense, especially on a left-wing that needs some work. He would immediately fit in on the second or third line, and bring some more punch to the offense.
It is worth noting that there are a few solid defensemen who may be for sale this deadline, the Sens should be looking to bolster their offense before their D-core.
While the blue line has been a struggle for the Senators in the past, Thomas Chabot has really stepped into his role this season, taking responsibility on defense while also maintaining his offensive productivity.
The defense has stayed healthy in this middle part of the season and really hasn’t been as much of a problem as they once were. While Jacob Bernard-Docker is out on injury, it still isn’t a major concern.
While I doubt anyone would complain if they went out and got a strong defender like Bowen Byram or Rasmus Ristolainen, their efforts may be better served focusing on the offense.
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